Weekly Update

We had a wonderful assembly with storyteller and arts educator Bobby Norfolk! The students enjoyed listening to and participating in his lively stories.

We wrapped up our unit on matter in science with a final Mystery Science lesson. Students explored the question, "Why are so many toys made of plastic?" They learned that some materials have the property of being meltable. They worked in groups to test four different types of candy to see if they were meltable or not. Students first made predictions, and then carried out the experiment by putting the candies in hot water. Then, they recorded their results. We found jelly beans held their shape the best, and chocolate was the most meltable. Students were also able to watch and discuss videos of how different products are made from meltable materials, including glass figures, crayons, and toys.

This week in math we learned about the "break apart" strategy to help us add bigger numbers using mental math. We also reviewed the lessons from Chapter 5, and we will be having a test over the chapter on Monday. Students should have review pages with extra practice problems in their green folders to help them study. Our next chapter will involve subtracting two digit numbers. Students may want to review their subtraction basic facts to help prepare for this chapter.

In reading, the students practiced reading the whole page when trying to determine the meaning of key word in a non-fiction book. They learned to read on and go back and re-read to look for context clues. They are also learning that good non-fiction readers will often read several books about a topic. Students worked in groups to compare and contrast a variety of books about the same topic. They noticed that the text features, sub-topics, and ways the books are organized can have both similarities, as well as differences.

Students have started their first opinion letters in writing. Each child has chosen a favorite book with a good character. They are writing about why their book has the best character. Students filled out graphic organizers to plan their opinion statement, reasons, and examples. They also learned what goes into a good opinion introduction. We are going to work on the body of our letters next.